Donald Trump campaign uses Beyoncé's 'Freedom' song without permission, gets cease-&-desist from artiste

Donald Trump stepped on Beyoncé's toes after his campaign posted a clip of her song "Freedom" on social media.

The track was played in a 13-second video of the U.S. presidential candidate disembarking a plane in Michigan, which was posted onto X (formerly Twitter).

As reported by Rolling Stone, the singer threatened to send a cease-and-desist to the Trump campaign, as he did not receive permission to use the track.

Video taken down

The video was posted on Aug. 20 (U.S. time) via the Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung's account.

Despite Beyoncé's label issuing a cease-and-desist, the video remained on the account up till Aug. 21 (U.S. time).

Based on a check on Aug. 22, the video appears to have been taken down.

This isn't the first time Trump has gotten into trouble for using an artiste's track without permission.

He has been at the target of public statements and cease-and-desist letters from other singers like Céline Dion, Neil Young, and The Rolling Stones, for using their music at his campaign rallies.

First used by political rival

Trump's political rival, Kamala Harris, has been using "Freedom" as well — but with Beyoncé's permission, reported Rolling Stone.

The song played at her first public appearance after securing Biden’s endorsement, when she walked out onto the podium.

Her campaign dropped an official launch video featuring the song soon after.

On Aug. 19 (U.S time), just a day before Trump's video was posted, the Harris-Walz campaign debuted a new ad with "Freedom" as its soundtrack.

In the ad, actor Jeffrey Wright narrated:

"What kind of America do we want? One where we’re divided, angry, depressed? C’mon! We’re Americans! Fascism? We conquered it. The moon? Landed on it. The future? Building it. Freedom? Nobody loves it more."

Top images via @beyonce and @realdonaldtrump/Instagram